Five minutes with… Kevin Krupka, Mountain Insurance Brokers

Colorado industry veteran Kevin Krupka talks agents stress levels and insuring worms and pregnant bellies.

Construction & Engineering

By

After bouncing around the commercial real estate industry, working for Allstate, and considering but ultimately rejecting law school, Kevin Krupka decided to start his own insurance agency. More than 15 years later, that agency is prospering as the Denver-based Mountain Insurance Brokers.

Kevin Krupka took a few minutes out of his busy schedule to tell Insurance Business America about life as an entrepreneur and his view of the insurance industry as a whole.

Q: How did you get into the insurance business?

A: By accident. Nobody aspired to get into the insurance industry when I was in college. After I graduated from Colorado State, I tried commercial real estate without finding my niche.

In 1986, I was hired at Allstate. I left because I felt there was more and that being with one industry was too specific. I decided to start my own agency in 1997.

Q: What are your priorities as president of Mountain Insurance Brokers?

A: To grow a profitable business. Our agents should be the first and best resource for clients and remember that we work for our clients, not the carrier.

Q: What should an ideal insurance broker be?

A: Stressed!

Q: In your opinion, what is the biggest issue facing insurance brokers today?

A: For smaller insurance brokers, the most difficult thing is getting enough appointments to be able to work with your clients effectively. It’s difficult to stay profitable and produce enough business. This leads to a proliferation of aggregators.

Q: What lines do you feel have the biggest potential for growth over the next few years?

A: Definitely commercial, particularly construction. The economic recovery has helped, particularly in Colorado. One of our clients has $30 million in construction projects just over the next couple of months. A few years ago, that wasn’t the case.

Q: What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever had to arrange cover for?

A: A couple of people starting different companies that wanted insurance: a guy growing worms in his basement and a company that made plaster casts of pregnant women’s bellies.

Q: If you weren’t in insurance, where would you be?

A: Law school. It was my original plan and I even took the LSAT, but I ended up going into insurance. No regrets.

Keep up with the latest news and events

Join our mailing list, it’s free!